After The Tenth..... When The Fun Really Begins

Each time I think Macy has reached an age that is really fun, time passes and the new age seems even better. I'm not sure how long this can continue..since the "terrible two's" are just around the corner, but right now spending time with her is quite enjoyable and quite humorous. Her vocabulary is increasing slowly, but her comprehension skills are a little scary.

My favorite example of her advanced comprehension (or what I consider advanced) occurred a few weeks back. I was in our bedroom, playing with Laney. I lifted her over my head as I often do, to be rewarded with some baby vomit. Since Laney is a spitting machine, this action drew little response from me, other than to announce out loud in a "matter of fact" manner that Laney had just spit up on me. Twenty seconds later, my eldest daughter  marches into the room holding out a tissue. How is that possible? It is getting harder and harder to remember that she's not even two yet.

It seems that everyday she comes out with another phrase or chant and I sometimes have to wonder where she gets it. The most recent ones are "move please" if you happen to be in her way and "Macy's turn", which is really cute until she decides that its Macy's turn to use your phone, hold your money clip or use your fork and gets upset when you don't actually share with her. Apparently in toddler land you can have anything you want if you just announce that it is your turn.

It is clearly time for us to start watching what we say in front of her. She's soaking up everything that goes on around her. This worries me a bit since I've been known to drop an F-bomb or two or twelve and Annie's vocabulary can make a sailor blush.

Just the other day we were looking for Macy's Bumbo, otherwise known as "purple chair." I mentioned out loud that it was in Annie's car and that I would go and get it. Before I knew what was happening, Macy disappeared down the hall, only to return with my sneakers in tow, along with a pair of her socks. (She apparently couldn't find my socks and decided that hers would have to do) She then sat down in front of me and tried to put her socks onto my feet, in an attempt to get me out the door and to get her chair.

Holy S*^# she's growing up fast.....

She was the happiest of babies, she was the fussiest of babies. Ok..that's enough mimicking of Dickens. In the past few weeks something happens to Laney when the sun goes down. During the day she smiles and laughs as much as any baby I've ever seen. She feeds and naps on a regular-ish basis and then the sun sets and everything goes to bizarro world where up is down, left is right and my precious little peanut becomes a handful.

Ok, I'm officially recanting my previous post about sleeping through the night. It just hasn't happened like I thought and it certainly hasn't happened since.

Last night was actually the climax of bizarro world. Let me just sum it up by saying that my morning started from the living room couch and I wasn't really banished there, but was actually directed there for my own preservation. (Have I mentioned how awesome my wife is?) Laney was in rare form last night, though she did stay on schedule. The only problem was that it wasn't our schedule. She woke up crying and screaming every 15-20 minutes from 9 pm till 6 am. Most of these sessions would only end with a feeding, after attempting to get her back to sleep via various other methods.

Somewhere during the course of the evening, Annie took pity on me and sent me to the guest bedroom to try and get some rest. (I've been a little under the weather and hoping that a restful evening would get me back on my feet) I grabbed my pillows and headed off to the big guest room bed; only to find my self standing in the dimly lit room staring at a bed COVERED with baby toys, clothes and other random items still looking for a permanent home. That's how I wound up on the couch. I made the somewhat educated decision that throwing some couch cushions on the floor was way easier than clearing off the bed.

The saddest part of the whole deal is that Annie and I actually celebrated the fact that we had actually gotten into bed before 10 pm.

I haven't been around a ton of preemies, but I think it is a safe bet to say that most 5 month old babies who were born 5 weeks early don't usually wear 6-9 month clothes. Well I know of one who is, and she actually started before she was officially 5 months old. It is so strange to look back at her early pictures and to see just how small she really was. I have to wonder if people think I'm either lying or just pulling their leg, when I tell them her actual age.

I have to check with Annie on this one, but I think Laney is officially on the "growth chart" now, having reached a size that puts her on the "regular" chart and not just the "preemie" chart. I'm not certain of her percentages, but I think her length is way up there.

I often find myself just looking at my littlest little one and if she's awake, she is typically smiling back at me. I remember Macy being an easy going and happy baby, but this kid smiles ALL THE TIME. She's nowhere near as easy of a baby, but I think she coos, laughs and smiles way more. When she's in a good mood, it is really a good mood.

(Yes I might have been "enticing" her a bit...but take my word for it...she smiles and talks a lot)

The other thing I've noticed about Laney is that she seems to pay close attention to her big sister. If Macy is nearby, then Laney is probably watching her intensely. For a while Macy seemed obsessed with her sister and it seems we've now moved into a mutually obsessive relationship. Macy now likes to call out "hold it" when she wants her sister in her arms and so far, Laney doesn't mind being the "it."

Oh my...I almost forgot to tell you about Laney's expensive breakfast.This past weekend Annie took Laney up to Jacksonville (JAX) for a weekend visit with Beth. As an added bonus, the Minnesota clan was embarking on a cruise out of JAX the same weekend. They flew up Friday night to spend some time with Beth and then in the morning had breakfast with the Minnesotans. The idea was for them to return Sunday evening, but Laney had other plans. Turns out that her tiny little belly was a bit upset and she suffered through a monumental bought of diarrhea and they had to return home early; about 18 hours after they landed. They had just enough time to say hi to everyone, grab a quick bite and then got back onto a plane.  

Quite an adventerous second plane trip ever.

(PS...her belly eventually settled down and eveyrthing is ok now)